Holy Trinity Column (Straubing)
The Holy Trinity Column on Theresienplatz in Straubing is an approximately 15 meter high votive column that was praised in 1704 and erected in 1709. It belongs to a genus of monuments that is particularly widespread in the Danube region. It is a landmark of Straubing's town square and is considered a baroque symbol of Christian piety, which was accompanied by civic pride and willingness to make sacrifices.
history
During the War of the Spanish Succession, Austrian hussars under General d'Herbeville besieged the city of Straubing. To protect against enemy troops, the outer Danube bridge was torn down and the inner Danube bridge and the Bschlacht ( Danube dam ) fortified. Since the besieged Straubing refused to pay the contribution of 80,000 guilders, the city was fired at from October 12 to 15, 1704. A woman died here. After the city had to capitulate on October 28, 1704 on top orders and allow the Austrians to enter, the enemy troops entered the city.
As early as August 3, 1704, the government, the chapter of the colleges, the magistrate and the Straubing citizenry had vowed to erect a monument dedicated to the Holy Trinity if the siege of the city went smoothly. Although the Austrian occupiers stayed in Straubing for ten years, the Straubing citizens got away relatively unmolested.
Even during the occupation, the Straubinger honored their vows. After the column was erected on October 17, 1709, it was inaugurated on October 20. On this occasion, the abbot of Windberg celebrated a high mass in the collegiate church of St. Jakob . The subsequent sacrament procession through the city was concluded with a Te Deum .
Description and design of the column
After the vow made in 1704, the Bogen sculptor Johann Gottfried Frisch was commissioned to make a model of the building. The execution was carried out by Adam Hämerl. The marble parts from Hallein were brought to Straubing by ship.
The Corinthian column stands on a square base. The group of the Holy Trinity is enthroned on the column, with God the Father and God's Son standing on the sides of the globe , while the Holy Spirit , represented by the symbol of the dove, hovers in a halo above the cross, which is positioned on the globe . The trinity group was made of wood, covered with copper and then gilded. The gold leaves were supplied by the Regensburg goldsmith Johann Schirmer, the setting was done by Wolfgang Leuthner, a relative of the builder Abraham Leuthner .
The open side wings on the square base to the north and south are also supported by Corinthian columns. The standing in phantom alabaster statues of the Holy Virgin Mary and the Annunciation Angel Gabriel created the Salzburg court sculptor Bernhard Michael Mandl . Two angels worshiping kneel on the platform ; to the east of the pedestal is the statue of the Archangel Michael with his flaming sword.
The entire monument is surrounded by a balustrade . Relics , coins and various documents were walled in under a sheet of lead at the foot of the cross . A prayer service takes place in front of the monument on Trinity Sunday evening.
The total cost of the Holy Trinity Column was 7,184 guilders , 41 kreuzers and 2 hellers . It was mainly financed by donations from the citizens of Straubing.
The column was restored in 1819, 1849, 1874 and 1911. In 1945, American soldiers damaged the balustrade when a tank hit it. Restoration in 1955 by the sculptor Otto Zirnbauer . Further damage occurred on October 5, 1984, when Dultstands were built between the city tower and the Trinity column . When a passing concrete truck caught an electric cable that had been looped around the head of an angel, it fell to the ground and broke. The angel was restored by the Regensburg cathedral builder Richard Triebe . Since parts of the balustrade were also damaged in the accident, the entire Trinity Column was subsequently renovated.
Although the column stands on urban land, it belongs to the parish of St. Jakob. The red Adnet marble (actually from a geological point of view not marble, but limestone), from which the building was mainly created, has faded over the years due to weathering. The red marble work in the St. Jakob basilica gives an impression of the earlier luminosity.
literature
- Marzell Oberneder: When grandfather was still alive. Cl. Attenkofer'sche Buchdruckerei, Straubing.
- Oberneder, Löbl, Schäfer: Straubing. Cl. Attenkofer'sche Buchhandlung, 1976.
- Walther Zeitler: Our beautiful Straubing. Cl. Attenkofer'sche Buchdruckerei, 1996.
- Dehio : Bavaria II-Lower Bavaria. Darmstadt 1988, p. 706.
- Rudolf Kracher: The Trinity Column. In: Guide through the St. Jakobskirche in Straubing. 1954, p. 19.
Web links
Coordinates: 48 ° 52 '53.9 " N , 12 ° 34'4" E